The invention relates to an oil filter wrench and, more particularly, to an oil filter wrench in the form of a pliers type tool that is capable of use in restricted areas. The tool includes a pair of pivotally connected actuating handles, each of which is connected by an articulating joint to a jaw member that is designed to grip an oil filter canister or other similarly shaped body.
Oil filter wrenches in the form of pliers having a pair of handles connected to arcuate gripping jaws have been commercially available for a number of years. The arcuate jaws typically include projecting teeth or ribs that serve as gripping members when the jaws are fitted and clamped around a cylindrical oil filter or canister. The wrench is then rotated in order to effect removal from an engine block, for example. Such wrenches are available in various sizes and configurations. U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,094, issued Jan. 21, 1997 for an Oil Filter Wrench, incorporated herewith by reference, depicts a type of wrench that is very useful for the removal of an oil filter from an engine.
A problem that may be encountered, particularly in vehicles having a smaller engine compartment, involves access to the cylindrical oil filter. Long handled wrenches often cannot be inserted and positioned appropriately in the engine compartment to enable gripping, turning or axial twisting of the wrench tool to remove the filter. Thus, in limited access situations, an oil filter wrench of the type, for example, as depicted in U.S. Pat. No. 5,595,094 is not always easy to use. As a consequence, there has developed a need for an oil filter wrench useful in restricted or confined areas. Such a tool is also considered useful for removal or gripping and turning of any cylindrical or generally cylindrical body mounted particularly in a restricted space as well as in unrestricted space.